Corpse Flower

28.01.2025

Corpse Flower

Why in the news?   

Recently, a “corpse flower” at the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney has drawn more than 20,000 curious viewers to a special display for its much-anticipated opening.

About Corpse Flower:

• It is the common name of Titan arum
• Scientific name: Amorphophallus titanium
• It is native to the Sumatra Island, Indonesia and gets its name from the literal translation of the Indonesian phrase Bunga bangkai.
• Chemicals emitted during female flowering are: Dimethyl disulfide, Dimethyl trisulfide, 3-Methylbutanal, Methanethiol, Methyl thioacetate and Isovaleric acid.
• It is categorized as Endangered by the IUCN.

Features:

• Some corpse flowers have been known to grow 3 meters tall before revealing a phallic spadix (or spike).
• The spadix of the flower emits a foul odor that smells like rotting meat to attract pollinators. Its blooms are often inconsistent.
• Many flowers bloom once a decade, though sometimes more frequently.

Life Cycle:

• • The life cycle depends on the time it takes for the “corm” of the flower to gather enough energy to bloom.
  • When enough energy has been stored through leaf cycles, the flowering stage begins.
  • The bloom lasts for a day, with the spathe (the purple, petal-like structure surrounding the spadix) taking hours to fully unfurl.
  • These flowers have both male and female flowers. Female flowers open first to prevent a plant from pollinating itself. Nearby flowers are required to bloom at similar times in order for cross-pollination to be possible.
  • Insects attracted to the odor are ones that lay their eggs in decaying meat, but they have the benefit of moving pollen between male and female flowers to trigger the flower’s reproductive cycle.

                                                                  Source: Indian Express

Consider the following statements regarding Corpse flower:

1. It is native to the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

2. It is categorized as endangered by the IUCN Red List.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A.1 only

B.2 only

C.Both 1 and 2

D.Neither 1 nor 2

Answer C